A New Leaf
by RandallBeast19
Summary: Fungus arrives at Randall's apartment to speak with him about the machine, only to discover Randall's softer side with his nephew and to his surprise, listening to Randall open up out the misfortunes in his life and the lizard monster desiring to make a chance back into the monster he used to be, along with abandoning the plans for the machine.


**Let's dabble in some Randall and Fungus, shall we? I will say the moments between them are pretty funny, especially when Randall's threatening to put him through the shredder unless he brings him another door and pronto at that! Let's see if I add a few twists to their relationship, along with Rex.**

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**~A New Leaf~**

Standing over the fireplace, Randall held the plans for the Scream Extractor in hand, sealing the manila envelope for perhaps the last time. He couldn't believe what he was considering doing, it was throwing away his chance at being the top Scarer and becoming vastly wealthy. Why would he even consider tossing the plans for the machine into the flames? A little four year old monster he's grown to love like a son has changed him, that's why.

He never thought in a million years that he'd be Randy again, be the same happy and somewhat nerdy monster not consumed with jealously and hatred. But Rex changed all that and the bond both of them shared brought Randall out of his dark place. He'd thank his sister a million times over for letting him take care of Rex, the little squirt had grown on him so much in these past few months. Even the other monsters at work noticed a change in him, he was becoming warmer, friendlier, and even becoming more open at times, though he still retained some aspects of being a jerk.

He looked at the envelope in his hands, before turning over to see Rex wearing a paper hat and playing around with a toy jet, making all manner of cute noises and giggling to his heart's content. He felt the tears coming on, as he takes a deep breath and threw the envelope into the flames, watching as the papers all went up in smoke, with the chances of the machine being built all thrown down the drain.

"Well, you old fool it looks you'll have to find someone else to become your lapdog." replied Randall, feeling a massive weight being lifted off him as he watched all the months of planning go up in flames. Yet he didn't regret burning his chances at fame and fortune.

"Hey, Uncle Randy, come play with me! I want you to be the flying car and send the tennis ball into orbit!" squealed Rex happily, stuffing a tennis ball that had Mike's face drawn on it into a toy car. "And then let's head to the mountain and take down that furry blue stupid head together!"

Smiling, Randall happily took his nephew up on the offer, joining him in the world of their imagination. He threw the car so high, it almost hit the ceiling, though he chuckled at how funny it would be sending Wazoski into orbit and he and Rex eating popcorn as they watch him scream in terror. He grabbed one of Rex's dart guns, as Rex fired some from his jet and Randall bombarded the mountain with them, both of them laughing as they high-five one another.

"Furry blue stupid head and tennis ball dude stood no chance against us, Uncle Randy! We're too fearsome to beat!" roared Rex, scampering around excitedly as he wrapped his arms around his uncle and hugged him tightly.

"Not even the likes of James P. Sullivan can stand up to you, Rex! Your roars will have him trembling in terror!" smiled Randall, nuzzling Rex's face and keeping him warmly snuggled against him, smiling as his nephew begins purring happily.

Even though Randall's in his late twenties, he couldn't get enough when it came to spending time with his nephew. It was a pleasure getting to use his imagination and join Rex in whatever crazy and hyper adventure the little squirt had cooked up within his mind. He nuzzled Rex's face some more, and strokes his back, laughing as both of them smiled at each other, with Rex lifting his paper hat up and grinning, placing it on Randall's head.

"Now you look even more cool, Uncle Randy! Looks like you're the captain of the seven Scare Seas with a ship full of booty and a crew ready to sail the seas forever!" grinned Rex, sticking his forked tongue out and snuggling more into his uncle's scaly chest.

"And I've got one hyper and energetic little squirt for a first mate! Perhaps when you're older, I'll let you steer the ship." chuckled Randall, adjusting the paper hat so he can see better and looking down at his nephew, before grabbing him. "And looks like we're in for some rough seas. You'd best hang on!"

Grinning wildly, Rex squealed as Randall tosses him up and catches him in his arms. Rex squealed and screamed happily, as Randall tossed him higher and higher, catching him each time and giving him an affectionate nuzzle. He then pulled Rex into a tickle fight, tickling his nephew's little feet and grinning as he watched Rex giggle and squirm around playfully at the mercy of his uncle's tickle attack.

Meanwhile, outside the apartment building, Fungus pulled up in his car, turning the engine off and stepping out of the vehicle. He looked at the building in front of him, finding the apartment building very well kept up. Randall sure did live the good life in a place like this, it was much nicer than other apartment buildings in town. He slowly approached the door, heading inside as he looks at the flight of stairs.

He could hardly believe he was doing this. He was afraid of Randall, despised him at times and really wanted out of this plot. Part of him wanted to return to get back in his car and drive back home, though another part of him wanted to find out about this odd change in his behavior, it was still Randall, though he was a bit nicer and not nearly as much of a jerk, he didn't even threaten him anymore.

"Oh, why am I even here? Randall will probably kill me if he sees me at his doorstep." shrugged Fungus, taking his first steps as he looks around the building. "What if he's got a shredder in there? What if he's in a really bad mood?"

Fungus pushes those thoughts out of his head the best he could. He was shaking as he climbed higher and higher, the fear present only seemed to increase as he reached the desired floor, looking towards the door of Randall's apartment. He gulped and slowly approached the door, reaching his hand out to knock.

Inside, Randall and Rex were playing some kind of pirate game, using toy swords to play sword fight together as they suddenly heard a knock on the door. Randall and Rex both turned to door. Who in the world could that be? If it was Waternoose, he'd have a special surprise waiting for the paranoid fool, slowly approaching the door and grabbing a baseball bat from the umbrella stand.

"Whack him hard on the head, Uncle Randy!" grinned Rex, wagging his tail in excitement.

However, to both the surprise of Randall and Rex, at the doorstep stood Fungus, nervously looking at Randall, who shrugged and tossed the bat back into his umbrella stand, with Rex going back to playing with his toys. Randall clearly didn't look happy seeing his useless and utterly stupid scaring coach on his door step.

"Fungus, what a pleasant surprise to see you." Randall said with sarcasm in his voice. "Working with you is bad enough, but having to see you at my apartment is perhaps a nightmare in of itself. You must really be a glutton for punishment when it comes to showing your face here. Too bad for you, I don't have a shredder here."

Fungus breathed a sigh of relief at that. He was still nervous and scared, Randall wasn't someone you wanted to get on his bad side. However, Randall didn't seem that threatening, nor he intends for great bodily harm on him either. He saw Rex playing around and caught sight of the paper hat on Randall's head, realizing the two of them were playing together. He never thought Randall was the type to play with a kid, even his own nephew.

"Randall, I came to talk to you about the project and the pressure from the boss he's putting on both of us." said Fungus, before Randall grabbed him and places his hands over his mouth to shut him up.

"Not in front of the kid, you idiot! Let me take care of Rex before you start running your stupid mouth!" hissed Randall under his breath, pulling Fungus inside his residence and closing the door. "Stay right here and don't touch anything!"

Naturally, Fungus did as he was told. He watched as Randall walked up towards his nephew, smiling at him as he takes off the paper hat, giving it back to Rex. Then, to his absolute shock, he watched as Randall scooped Rex into his arms and hugged him tightly, seeing both lizard monsters smiling as they hugged one another, basking in the warmth of their embrace.

"I love you, Uncle Randy!" giggled Rex happily, nuzzling Randall's snout and hugging him very tight.

"I love you too, Rex." purred Randall, smiling as he hugged his nephew back tightly, snuggling him for a moment before putting him back down. "Rex, Fungus and I need to catch up on some things, so how about you go watch cartoons in your room and when I'm done, I'll get dinner going, okay?"

"Okay. Give him a couple of whacks for me, Uncle Randy!" grinned Rex, as Randall chuckled and strokes his single frond cutely.

"I already intend to." smiled Randall, seeing Rex scamper off to his bedroom to watch cartoons and closing the door behind him.

Fungus was utterly shocked at what he just witnessed. Was this the same Randall that always showed his wrathful nature? He couldn't believe Randall was capable of loving anybody, even his own nephew, which shocked him. Randall was like a real loving parent towards Rex and he could tell the kid was very happy and spoiled. He watched as Randall went into the kitchen and pour himself a cup of coffee.

"Alright, so tell me what does that old fool want? I can't have five minutes to myself without having him breathing down my neck." shrugged Randall, heading back into his living room and taking a seat on the couch. "He must really be losing it if he's sent you to deliver his messages."

"He wants the machine completed now, he wants us to gather as many human kids as possible and use the machine on them to gather the scream energy." Fungus said, taking a seat in a chair, looking down for a moment as he faces Randall. "He wants to start the project as soon as possible before anyone gets suspicious of his plans."

The machine? Randall remained silent for a bit, looking at his reflection in the coffee cup. Even when Waternoose promised him wealth and the top spot, he was overworked, underappreciated, and constantly being disrespected and belittled. He even has the gall to brown-nose Sullivan, acting like a father-figure to that big blue idiot. He's never liked Waternoose, but now he fully resents and hates him with a passion. It was obvious that he was being used and likely Waternoose would throw him under the bus and take full credit for it all anyway.

"Randall?" Fungus asked, taking notice of Randall's thoughts and even seeing a hint of regret in his expression.

"I hate him, Fungus." replied Randall, grumbling as he took another sip of his coffee.

"Sully?" questioned Fungus.

"No, I hate Waternoose. I hate him probably more than I do Sullivan. I work my ass off and barely get any sleep for days and all that's on his mind is using me as some worthless henchman and obsessing over his stupid company! I thought if I worked on the machine, I'd get the respect I deserved, but no, he just constantly destroys me and kisses Sullivan's ass every fucking time!" growled Randall, putting his coffee cup down and looking at Fungus. "Before you came, I threw the blueprints for the machine into the flames. I destroyed them."

Fungus was utterly shocked. Randall spent so much time on this project that he just threw the plans for it into the flames. Why? This was the ticket to solve the energy crisis, it would give Randall respect and money, and it would've given the lizard monster all he's ever wanted in life. But why would he just throw it all away?

It was also surprising that Randall was showing an emotional side to him of all people. He always thought Randall was nothing but bitterness, anger, and hatred, but he does have a heart. He was seeing a different side to the monster he's worked with for years and while he himself hated working on the project, he couldn't believe that Randall also hated it and wanted out too.

"But why, Randall? I thought you wanted fame and wealth, I thought you wanted to become CEO and have Sully bow before you?" asked Fungus, wiping his glasses using a cloth.

"I think you know the answer from seeing me with Rex, Fungus. I love him." said Randall, fighting back the urge to cry. He could hardly believe he's confiding in the one he least expected to talk about his feelings, but besides Rex, Fungus was all he had to confide about something like this. "Rex's my whole world, he means everything to me. When he was born four years ago and I got to hold him, just seeing him look at me and reach his hand out melted my heart. I ended up crying when I held him, he looked so beautiful in my arms and I remember gently grabbing his hand as he babbled something and smiled at me, his eyes sparkled when he looked at me. I knew from the way he looked at me, we were already bonded for life."

"I never took you be the one who would care for another. I mean, look at me, got a wife and little Fungus Jr. who's full of energy and I love my family, but it's just surreal hearing that you love somebody and care for them." replied Fungus, surprised by Randall's softer side.

"You're married? Wow, I feel bad for that poor woman you've trapped." chuckled Randall, still taking the time to throw an insult or two at Fungus. "I hope she can make it to the door and flee to her mother's."

"That's the Randall I've grown to know over the years." shrugged Fungus, rolling his eyes at the amused lizard monster.

"Anyway, Rex's parents ended up having Rex due to being irresponsible when it came to more personal matters and neither of them were ready for the child, so I took custody of Rex in order to give him a nice, stable life without too much stress, due to his parents having very busy lives. Not to mention, I've always been with the kid since he was born, becoming almost like a father to him over the years." said Randall, grabbing his glasses and removing them. "I love Rex with all my heart. I haven't been this happy since the beginning of my university days."

"I heard you went to MU with Sully and Mike." replied Fungus. "Neither of them say much about you."

Randall confiding about his college life to Fungus? His painful years at MU are what put him on the dark road he was on for years, but Rex and the love he feels for the squirt brought him back to the light. Considering he's already admitted to hating his boss and that he loves his nephew, he might as well reveal to Fungus about his college years.

"I wasn't always the monster you see before you. I was once a shy, happy, and timid monster and a bit of a nerd at that, especially with the glasses. I met Wazoski in MU and he was my roommate and best friend, but our friendship broke when he left me for Sullivan and I joined up with a bunch of assholes in a futile attempt to be with the cool crowd, only for them to abandon me after I got humiliated in the Scare Games. I remember bitterly saying as I lost that it would be the last time I lose to Sullivan." revealed Randall, his voice full of regret and his eyes filling with a few tears.

Randall was a nerd and he was friends with Mike? He lost his friendship and went down a dark path, with these so-called 'cool' monsters corrupting him. It was strange, but in a way, Fungus felt sympathy towards Randall. It was mistakes in his past and bad influences that made him into what he was.

"In retrospect, I should've joined Wazoski's team and perhaps then, our friendship could've been saved. I might've gotten my chum back, my best friend. I was stupid for not realizing it sooner, but if only I wasn't so determined to be with the cool crowd, I could've had a happier time at college and with a friend that cared about me. I never should've helped in that prank against him and his teammates." sighed Randall, looking back at Fungus. "I miss the monster I was, I miss my innocence, I miss being the happy and warm monster I was back then, I miss Mike at times and yearn to be his friend again. I miss all of that."

Fungus wanted to reach out and put a hand on Randall to comfort him, yet he was worried that Randall would reject his sympathy and respond with violence. Taking a deep breath, he rose from his seat and moved over to the couch, sitting beside Randall and placing a reassuring hand on him. Randall shuddered at the sudden contact, but didn't push him away. He looked at Fungus as he grabbed his coffee cup and takes another sip.

"I thought you were just a hateful psychopath who only wanted to be better than Sully, but I see you've got a heart, Randall. You feel remorse for your actions, you want friends and yearn to be loved, and you've got a nephew that loves you very much. You do have good in your heart." said Fungus, patting him on his arm. "I never thought I'd see you like this."

"Who else could I honestly confide into? Rex's way too young to understand and I couldn't talk about this with Sullivan or Wazoski, so you're the only one I can speak about this kind of thing, especially about the project." replied Randall, chuckling as he took another sip of his coffee. "I can't believe I've actually opened up to you. I guess I really am changing."

"You are changing for the better, Randall. But what about Waternoose? He's not gonna rest until the machine is ready and he'll kidnap over a thousand human children to save his company." said Fungus, happy that Randall wasn't this heartless monster and is actually against this plot too.

"I'm gonna turn over all evidence of his involvement with the Scream Extractor to the CDA and hand them a few recordings of his motives to them as well. I don't know what'll happen to the company when I take him down, but I'm not gonna be his lapdog any longer and if he tries to pin this on me, I'll testify against him and fight to the ends of Monstropolis to see him locked away for life." said Randall, his voice full of determination. "Also, if you can, help me take him down, Fungus. Gather as much evidence as you can on him."

"I'll do it, Randall. I'll get all that I can from him." nodded Fungus to Randall, happy to see that Randall's making a change for himself. "But what about the factory? He states that kids screams aren't enough anymore."

"There's always room for alternative energy sources. Someone will figure out something for the energy crisis." responded Randall, knowing how resourceful his kind are and knowing that Monsters Inc. will still go on without Waternoose.

To see Randall redeem himself was something Fungus never thought he'd see. Even though he can be scary and show off a very hostile side, Randall still cared and even under all that roughness, he's got a heart and he's able to feel love. Seeing Randall's bond with Rex was proof enough that Randall's a good monster at heart, he's got a nephew and he loves the kid more than anything.

"And Fungus, should anything happen to me, please promise me something." said Randall, looking right into Fungus's eyes.

"What?" asked Fungus.

"Please don't ever let Waternoose get his hands on Rex, keep him safe should anything happen to me." said Randall, getting up from the couch and placing his hands on Fungus's shoulders. "And let him know each and every day that I love him more than anything. Look after him with your life."

"Randall... I will..." replied Fungus, astonished by what Randall's said to him. "But don't do anything too reckless, look for others to help you. Talk with others, have other monsters come to your side. Talk to Mike and repair your bond with him. Get your friend back and let him know you've changed."

Randall thought it was too late to perhaps ask Wazoski to forgive him and regain the friendship they once had. However, the hope in Fungus's eyes renewed that feeling to be with his old friend once more. He smiled at the hopeful chance of being reunited and becoming friends with Wazoski once more, giving Fungus a small nod that he would.

"Well, I'm gonna get back home. The wife's probably worried sick about me, especially with how clumsy I am." chuckled Fungus, shaking Randall's hand as he makes his way to the front door. "Randall, I'm happy to see you change, but can you be a little less harsh on me when we work?"

"I'll think about it. And perhaps your wife has already made a break for the door and slapped you with the papers." joked Randall, finding a new way to tease Fungus when it came to messing with him. "But I won't threaten you with the shredder anymore."

Ignoring the insult, Fungus bid Randall goodnight and walked out of the residence, smiling as he was happy to see Randall's personality changing and the fact that the Scream Extractor plan was now scrapped and Waternoose would soon face punishment for his treachery. Getting back to his car, he looked at the apartment building one more time and drove off towards home.

Back inside the apartment, Randall felt hopeful. Fungus was far from his favorite monster in the world, but it felt good confiding in someone and even happy to know that he was against the plot as well. He was done with Waternoose. All that mattered to him was becoming the monster he used to be and loving Rex. He grabbed his glasses and put them back on, smiling as he knocks on Rex's door and enters the bedroom.

"Uncle Randy, you give Fungus tons and tons of hits to the face?" grinned Rex, running to his uncle and hugging him tightly.

"You know it, even insulted him about his wife too. Twice!" laughed Randall, hugging Rex back tightly as he picks him up and cradles him in his arms. "He was running out of here screaming in pure terror."

"Uncle Randy, you really are the coolest and scariest monster ever!" smiled Rex, nuzzling Randall's snout and hugging his head as he purrs happily.

Feeling joyful tears in his eyes, Randall hugged Rex warmly and strokes his single frond cutely, kissing him on his scaly head. Rex grinned and giggled, scampering up Randall's head and resting atop it, giggling as Randall lovingly strokes his tail, both of them smiling at each other as they basked in their affectionate moment.

"Come on, Rex, let's get dinner started. You can help me out tonight." smiled Randall, heading into the kitchen with his sweet nephew grinning and hugging him.

"I know the perfect way to help! I'm gonna use the pots and pans as drums!" purred Rex happily, snuggling close to his uncle he loves so much.

**The end.**

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**Randall for sure needed to confide in someone and Fungus was perhaps his best choice, even if their relationship is pretty volatile. Monsters University is where all most of my sympathy is for Randall as he lost Mike, got corrupted by Johnny, humiliated by Sully, and later being used by Waternoose really makes me feel bad for Randall and all he's went through. Personally, I'd strangle Johnny for all he caused Randall and for abandoning him like he's trash. This is perhaps my most emotional story yet in the fandom, I hope you all enjoy it! BeastlyBat93, signing off! **


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